My Friend
by Nurse Steggy
Summary: "Sometimes I wish they had…"he muttered. "Then I could be with my parents again…."  "Stop talking like that!" she cried.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice….*sigh***

Why did they have to pick on him? Sure, he wasn't the biggest kid in grade, but why him? He stared down at his textbook, trying to block it all out. He didn't care what they said about him….but when they attacked his parents…that's crossing a line you should never cross! Would YOU like it if someone made jokes and insulted your murdered parents because they were acrobats in a circus? It stung.

The boy rushed out of the classroom to try and get to lunch while avoiding-

"HEY GRAYSON!"

Too late. He turned and saw the kid. Acario Cassius was tall, and bulky. That's all Grayson could describe him as. He was a mean, cold-hearted bastard who liked to pick on kids smaller than him. He saw that he had three others around him and almost panicked. He couldn't exactly fight them….without possibly giving away a connection that he, Richard Grayson, was Robin. And that would give Batman away as well.

A blonde one ripped his books out of his arms and tossed them about. The other two pushed him down. Dick was furious…but he didn't exactly want the teacher to call home and tell Bruce he got into a fight at school.

"Hey little runt!" Acario said as Dick got up. "We ain't finished with ya!"

"Well if you had any skill in English, you would realize that ain't is a slang word and not proper grammar," Dick said. "Now if you'd excuse me I'd like to get to lunch and away from you Neanderthals."

Acario smacked Dick across the face.

"That's it runt! You asked for it!" he yelled, while one of his lackeys asked, "What's a Nea-Ne-Ne- whatever Grayson said?"

"Sometimes I wonder why I'm friends with you Aynon….." Acario groaned.

Acario punched Dick in the stomach and started to beat on him. His lackeys stood watch, and made sure Dick couldn't get away. He was crying out, but rather hoarsely, since Acario had him by the throat.

Now someone was watching this atrocious scene. She was about to throw up, despite the fact she had nothing in her stomach to throw up. The little girl ran over to one of her friends.

"Bekka?" she called tentatively.

"What's wrong Jea?" an older, taller girl asked.

"I need your help!" she said. "Acario's beating somebody up!"

The two girls rushed over to where Dick's books were scattered. The boys were gone, including Dick. _He must have run off when they let him go_, Bekka thought. Bekka began to pick up the scattered papers and books, Jea helping. Once it was all collected, Jea opted to skip lunch in order to find Richard.

"Good luck Jeanne," Bekka said walking towards her next class.

…..

Jeanne continued to walk around the grounds until she heard a sniffling sound. She looked around and spotted the bleachers. There was no one on them. She looked behind them. There he was, clothes torn, and beaten. She looked down at her watch…crap! Lunch had been over almost an hour ago! She shook her head and told herself to focus on him.

"Richard…."she tentatively said reaching a hand out.

"JUST GET AWAY!" he yelled.

Jeanne Trinity may have been scared out of her wits at the prospect of cutting class, but she was no quitter!

"Richard Grayson, you look at me right now!" she snapped. "You've been gone for almost two hours, and you've probably got people worried, and god-damn-it LOOK AT ME!"

Richard's blue eyes flew up to her. His heart stopped. It was that girl in his science class! She was always sitting by herself, preferring to work alone. Dick had never seen her look so hurt or so angry.

"I got Bekka and came back and you were gone! Do you know how badly that scared me? I thought for a moment they'd killed you!" she said gripping his shoulders.

Dick just stared at her. He hadn't known Jeanne cared about anyone. She wasn't a snob…she was just reclusive. So when she hugged him hard enough to squeeze the air out of him and make his ribs hurt, he almost yelped in surprise.

"Sometimes I wish they had…"he muttered. "Then I could be with my parents again…."

"Stop talking like that!" she cried. "Your adoptive father loves you and that would destroy him!"

"Huh…" Dick said pushing her away.

"I've seen him at the school functions Dick. He's met my father…. And I saw how his visage grew softer, and his voice lightened a note when he talked about you. He really does care about you Richard…he really does," Jeanne said. "Unlike my father…"

"Your father seemed perfectly fine!" he protested.

Jeanne crossed her arms and said coldly, "Not everything is what it seems."

"What do you…."Dick started only to stop.

He glanced at Jeanne and took a closer look at her. Dick licked his thumb and swiped it across her cheek. Makeup came off her face, revealing a little patch of purple were it'd come off. He took her handkerchief and a water bottle. He gently wiped her face, her make up coming off. Suddenly, her face was paler and covered in bruises.

"Jeanne…" he started.

"We match…" she said smiling miserably. "We both look like we got beat up."

"I fought back…but I STILL couldn't get away!" he hissed.

"Do you think I can get away? He's my father Richard. School's the only place I can feel safe," Jeanne said. "My mother's dead…and so are my two sisters. Richard…I'm so afraid."

Jeanne looked at him with big eyes.

"Daddy's not going to be happy with me for skipping class," she said. "But I had to come find you…I just had to."

Dick looked at her and asked, "Would you…I dunno…like to sit by me in science sometime?"

"Sure…if I live that long," she muttered.

"Look…if things get bad…run away. I'll help you," Dick said looking at her. "Like you're helping me."

"Take this…"Jeanne said holding out something.

He took the object from her hand. He looked down at it. It was a necklace….a thin chain with a heart on the end. She closed his fingers over it, her expression sad.

"RICHARD? RICHARD!" a voice called.

"Dad?" he said in surprise.

"I told you he loves you…" Jeanne said softly.

"I know he does…it's…"

"Not the same? It's nice to know at least that someone loves you."

Dick nodded. The two kids crawled out from under the bleachers. The two exchanged a glance.

"JEANNE MELODY TRINITY!" a voice growled.

She jumped and grabbed Richard's hand. She slunk behind him and whined. Dick gripped her hand protectively.

"Dick!" Bruce Wayne said running towards them. "Dick what happened to you?"

"It was noth—"

"Bull shit Richard! Mr. Wayne, a group of boys attacked your son," Jeanne said. "I went to get help and when I came back he was gone. I went to go find him."

Dick looked at Jeanne, her protectiveness becoming alarmingly prominent. She seemed to shrink when her father came over though.

"JEANNE TRINITY! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" he yelled.

"Daddy I-"

"YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN CLASS—"

"Daddy I-"

"THERE IS NO EXCUSE YOUNG LADY! WHEN WE GET HOME—"

"Please no…"

"STOP IT!" Dick snapped at Mr. Trinity. "It's not her fault…it's mine. She came to see if I was all right."

The man just glared at Dick and grabbed Jeanne's arm, causing her to flinch. Dick slipped a piece of paper into her hand. She wouldn't look at it, or him, until her father let her go. He grabbed the back of her neck and pushed her into the car. She looked back at Dick. Her eyes said one thing….she was terrified.

…..

That night, Dick barely touched his food. He'd been cleaned up from his fight, the blood washed off, and cuts bandaged. Bruce looked at him and asked, "What's wrong Dick?"

"…I'm worried about Jeanne," he admitted. "…I think her father's hitting her."

Bruce's eyes flashed and he asked, "Why do you think that?"

"She didn't exactly tell me outright…but she hinted to it. I asked if she wanted to sit next to me in science tomorrow and she said, 'If I live that long'. I'm just worried."

Bruce looked at Dick and asked, "How long have you been getting picked on?"

"About a month…but it just turned physical…" Dick lied.

He stared at his food and thought back to last week….

"_HEY GRAYSON!" Acario called. "Let's play freak!"_

_He tried to run away, but Acario began to smack him around. Dick had kicked him in the gut, proving he wasn't totally defenseless, but when the other three showed up…._

_Things got ugly._

_Two of the thugs were holding him still while, Acario and the other one beat on him. Suddenly he heard a voice._

"_KNOCK IT OFF!"_

_A book flew through the air and smacked Acario in the face. An array of books were thrown at the thugs. Eventually they dropped him. A black haired girl rushed out to gather her books and disappeared at the moment Dick looked up._

_All he could see was the back of her. Her black hair was long, falling to her butt. She was walking quickly, her head down. He could tell she was hurt. She was limping slightly away from the spot._

Suddenly it dawned on him…that girl was Jeanne! She'd been there from the start, secretly defending him. He looked at Bruce and asked, "Can I go on patrol with you? Please?"

"I don't know-"

"Master Grayson, I'd advise against it," their butler, Alfred Pennyworth said.

"Please…"Dick said.

"Dick…" Bruce said standing up. "Come here. I want to speak with you."

Dick got up and followed Bruce. Bruce turned and looked at Richard.

"Dick this is about Jeanne isn't it?" he asked crossing his arms.

"Bruce…I need to know if she's all right. I did some research…." Dick started. "And I didn't like what I found. Her mother was apparently beaten to death and her twin sisters disappeared a year before she was born. The way she talked to me made me think that Mr. Trinity killed his wife and two daughters…and Jeanne knows."

"Why wouldn't she tell anyone?"

"This is her FATHER! Her FATHER, who may have KILLED her mother and sisters. He's dangerous. He hits her! She's terrified of him!" Dick expostulated. "Not like most kids who suffer abuse just walk out of the closet and say, 'Hey my name is so-and-so and my dad killed my mother and two sisters and likes to beat the stuffing out of me!'"

Bruce was quiet as he looked at his son. He sighed and said, "Maybe we should pay them a courtesy visit instead Dick. After all, she did go hunting for you."

Dick looked at him and questioned, "As ourselves?"

"Don't worry Dick…if anything goes wrong I have a plan. Now it's 6:30, why don't we go stop by and say hi to your friend," Bruce said.

Dick nodded and followed Bruce outside. They got into the car and he began to drive towards the Trinity residence. Dick was silent as they drove. He looked down at the necklace and popped the heart open. On the one side was a picture of a woman and a baby girl. The woman was very pretty, with long curly black hair and stunning green eyes. In her arms she held the baby. The baby had a tuft of hair, and he assumed she was Jeanne. On the other side was a picture of two girls in evening dresses. The two girls were identical…except for one thing…their eyes. Both girls had pale skin, black hair that fell to their waists, but the one with the white dress had blue eyes and the one in the black dress had bright green eyes. The two girls were smiling hand in hand.

Willow Trinity looked beautiful with her big bright blue eyes. Angela Trinity was the girl next to her. Angela looked happy with her sister. Dick felt his heart drop. These two girls would never live to see their thirteenth birthday. He realized the love Jeanne had for the sisters she never knew. Dick had begun to wonder why she cared for him, but why would she have cared for the sisters she never knew? It was love. That was the only thing….love, pure, untainted love.

_There she was…what was her name again? Oh yeah…Jeanne. Dick was watching her from his spot behind the bookshelf. The teacher had told him to check for any other kids before they returned to the class room. That's when he found Jeanne hiding away. She was sitting against one of the shelves, holding her locket, tears dripping down her eyes. He reached his hand out and shook her shoulder._

"_Jeanne…it's time to go," he said._

_She looked up at him._

"_D-d-d-dick…"she gasped. "When did you get here?"_

"_Just a couple of seconds ago," Dick said. "C'mon Jea."_

_He grabbed Jeanne's hand and pulled her up. The two walked away from the library, Jeanne not speaking. The two separated after gathering their books, both walking to a separate class. He couldn't forget that she was crying…but she blocked it out entirely._

Bruce nudged Dick and the two got out of the car. The two walked up to the door and knocked on it. They received no reply. They knocked on the door again. A whimper was heard. Dick looked at Bruce and the man seemed concerned. Dick picked the lock on the door before Bruce could scold him for it. He pushed the door open. Jeanne was nowhere in sight. Dick's breath came in sharp. He could smell the rust…and it hit him hard.

"Bruce…I can smell blood."

The man nodded and walked in. Dick spotted a moving shadow and whispered, "Jea?"

"Momma? Momma where are you?" a voice whimpered. "Momma you promised you'd protect me."

He moved a cushion aside and there she was. Jeanne was curled up in a little bloody ball.

"Bruce!" he said alarmed. "Bruce she's hurt!"

He could hear Bruce's heavier footsteps approaching them at a quick pace. He saw the girl, not much bigger than Dick, huddled up against the wall.

"Momma…Momma," she whimpered, her eyes shut. "Momma…you promised you'd protect me."

Something tugged in Bruce Wayne's heart and he looked at Dick. The boy looked horrified. He got up and looked around for Jeanne's father.

"Mr. Trinity?" he called out.

"GET OUT ANGELA!" a voice yelled. "GET OUT ANGELA!"

"But I wanna stay and play Daddy!" a voice said mockingly. "Just because Willow doesn't want to, doesn't mean I don't!"

Angela? Willow? Bruce carefully opened the door a crack. Now…Batman nor Bruce Wayne believed in the supernatural…but there was no other explanation! A blood stained girl in an evening dress was floating…yes **FLOATING**, above him. Her eyes cast a wicked glance as she purred, "You're going to join us Daddy….you'll pay for hurting little Jeanne. Momma's not happy with you…not happy at all."

Bruce stood there in shock. Angela finally saw him and asked sweetly, "Who's your friend Daddy?"

"WHO ARE YOU?" Mr. Trinity roared. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY LABORATORY?"

Bruce looked at Angela and said, "I came with my son to check on your sister….my son was worried about her."

Angela smiled and said, "Yes you're Richard's father aren't you? Jeanne talks about Richard a lot. She loves telling Momma about him. Momma likes him. She says he's a good kid."

Maybe Dick complaining that he felt like he was being watched was valid. Was the ghost of this girl's dead mother watching his boy? Was Jeanne's sister watching him too?

"BRUCE!" Dick cried.

Jeanne had gotten up and had run over to him.

"Angela? Angie what are you doing?" she whispered.

"Go Jeanne…go with them," Angela commanded. "Take her with you when you leave Mr. Wayne. Daddy and I have something to discuss."

Bruce Wayne watched the girl disappear, and Mr. Trinity dropped to the floor. Bruce had Dick call 911. He looked over Jeanne and said, "Just hold on little one…"

He heard the sirens wailing in the distance as he listened to the fading rhythm of her heart. The paramedics rushed in and took the girl away first. They carted away the man next.

"Mr. Wayne if you could explain…" one paramedic began.

"My son and Miss Trinity were talking earlier and Dick got the impression Mr. Trinity was harming his daughter. To reassure Dick, and quite frankly sir, myself, that Miss Jeanne was all right. When we came to the house the door was open and we found Miss Jeanne gravely injured. I went to go find Mr. Trinity and found him collapsed on the floor. I believe Miss Jeanne fought her father," Bruce said. "If you wouldn't mind, my son would like to accompany Miss Trinity."

"Not at all Mr. Wayne," the paramedic said.

Dick jumped in the ambulance and Bruce got into his car. He called Alfred on the phone.

"Alfred…we'll be late coming home," he said. "Turns out Dick was right."

"Poor girl," Alfred said. "How is Master Dick fairing?"

"He's with her…"

"That's what I thought."

…

Dick was sitting upright, stiff as hell as the ambulance sped down the road.

"Momma! Momma!" she cried.

"Hush…" Dick whispered. "I'm right here my dear."

"D-d-d-dick?" she whimpered.

"Yeah Jea…just hold on okay?"

"I want my mommy…"

"And I want you to stay with me Jeanne!"

"All right Dick….I'll hold on."

"It's what your sister Angela would've done…"

Angela? How did he know about Angela? Jeanne forced her eyes to open. Dick had her locket on, the heart next to his. He looked at her and held her hand. He was smiling at her as he brushed her hair out of her face.

"Hey angel…" he murmured. "Just keep hanging on."

Suddenly the ambulance shrieked to a stop and they rushed her out. Dick sat outside the OR, pacing back and forth. He wanted to see her so bad! He couldn't stop shaking. Bruce appeared and brought his adopted son into a hug. He told the young teen Jeanne would be all right. All Dick could say was, "I hope you're right."

….

About three hours later a doctor came out and went over to them.

"Mr. Wayne? Are you here with Miss Trinity?" he asked.

"Yes…is something wrong?"

"No, actually everything is fine. She had a concussion, a few broken ribs and some bad bruising, but she'll live," the doctor reported. "All thanks to you. Worst case scenario, if the abuse had continued and you hadn't found her, Jeanne would surely be dead. She's been moved into a hospital room. We'll be able to discharge her in about two weeks."

Dick felt Bruce's hand on his shoulder. He found a slight smile on his adopted father face.

"You trusted your instincts and they were right," Bruce said. "I'm proud."

"She's a good friend of mine…one I didn't even know I had," Dick said. "I'm glad she's all right. Are we allowed to go see her?"

"I don't see why not…she'll probably be asleep but I see no harm," the doctor said.

"What about her father?" Bruce asked.

"Mr. Trinity? It appears he died of a heart attack, god knows why," he replied.

"_I'd have died of a heart attack too if I saw the daughter I murdered hovering over me…." _Bruce thought to himself.

Dick impatiently tugged on his arm. The two headed down to the room. Dick opened the door and went over to Jeanne's side. He looked at her so broken and tattered. She'd been washed off so the blood was gone, but her pale skin looked as bruised as ever. She had a black eye, and some gauss gently wrapped around her ribs. Her head was bandaged as well. She looked frail and breakable. Dick sat beside her and took her hand.

"Everything's okay now Jea…" he said. "You're going to be just fine…you'll be all right."

Bruce sat there worried. What was going to happen to the young child? Her father's dead, and she has no other family in the area….or does she? Bruce was determined to see the child through this.

"Dick…did Jea ever mention any other family members?"

"No…but I have a picture of her mother…if that'll help," the boy replied opening the locket.

Bruce looked at it and said, "Ophelia."

"Huh?"

"Ophelia Lysander," he repeated. "I knew Ophelia when I was younger…I was wondering what happened to her. I heard that she'd gotten married…but this…"

He looked at Jeanne and said, "She looks a lot like her mother."

"So do the other two…" Dick said gesturing to the other picture.

Bruce nodded and said, "I think Ophelia's sisters still live in town. I'll have to give Althea and Kalika a call."

Dick nodded and watched Bruce leave the room. Bruce hunted up a phone book and was able to find Althea's phone number. He dialed the phone and waited for an answer.

"Hello this is the Lysander residence, Kalika speaking."

"Kallie? Kallie, it's Bruce," Bruce said smiling.

"Brucie? OH MY GOD! ALTHEA! ALTH IT'S BRUCIE!" Kalika's excited voice came. "Bruce, where'd you go? We missed you at the reunion."

"Hey Kallie…did you hear about Ophelia?" Bruce asked.

"No…we haven't heard from our triplet since the day the twins were born…why?"

"Kallie…Ophie's dead," Bruce said softly. "She's been dead for some time now."

"Bruce…Bruce…my lord…" Kalika's voice sobbed. "Is that why you're calling?"

"No Kalika…Ophelia's daughter needs a guardian."

"Don't you mean daughters?"

"No Kalika…you know what? Put Althea on the phone please."

He heard Kalika cry as another voice came.

"Bruce? Bruce what the hell is going on?" a harsh voice came from the other end.

"Althea…Ophelia's dead…so are the twins," Bruce said. "But listen to me Althea. I'd like to meet you at that café we first met at. I need to discuss something with you."

"Be there in twenty minutes Bruce Wayne," was the response.

Then the line went dead. He closed the phone and walked back in.

"Dick… I know you want to stay here, but I need you to come with me."

"Where?"

"We're going to meet Jeanne's Aunt Althea….and possibly Aunt Kilika."

Dick nodded and squeezed her hand. He got up and walked over to Bruce.

"Why do you want me to come with you?"

"I want you to meet them…"

"Let me guess….Althea wasn't too pleased you dropped off the grid and rose to superstardom without a word huh?"

"…There is a possibility that she thinks I'm no good and not worth listening to. Dick, you're mostly here to represent Jeanne. You know her better than I do, so you can tell them what you know about her."

Bruce drove them to the café, Dick silent all the way. Bruce got out and was greeted by a woman. Dick's jaw almost dropped. She looked exactly like Jeanne, just older, and taller. Another woman greeted Bruce. She had dark green eyes, unlike the other's serious blue.

"Brucie!" the green-eyed one said, giving him a hug.

"Hey Kalika," he replied. "Glad to see you don't hate me."

The serious looking one looked at Dick and asked, "Yours Bruce?"

"This is my adopted son Richard. Richard, these are some friends of mine, Althea and Kalika Lysander."

Dick shook their hands respectfully.

"So what's this about Bruce?" Althea asked. "This isn't about meeting your son is it?"

"No, but why don't we go inside?" Bruce asked.

Althea nodded civilly, and Kilika put a hand on Dick's shoulder.

"He's adorable!" she chirped. "So this is the boy you adopted from the circus?"

"Yes Kalika…" Bruce smiled.

His smile looked slightly forced, but Kalika didn't seem to mind. The four sat in a booth, the two sisters on one side and the two guys on the other.

"Look…your sister Ophelia had a third daughter…" Bruce started.

"What?" Althea demanded.

"Her name's Jeanne…she looks exactly like you Miss Althea," Dick said. "I go to school with her. There was an incident at school and Jeanne came looking for me. Needless to say we talked a bit, and I was put under the impression her father was….harming her. We went to check on her…and it turns out I was right. Jea was pretty beat up."

"Her father apparently died of a heart attack at the hospital…" Bruce said. "Jeanne had a locket with her mother's picture in it. I recognized Ophelia at once. So I called you two."

"Our niece?" Kilika asked. "One of them is alive?"

"Jeanne," Dick said. "She's really sweet and super smart…it's just she's been hurt and hurt bad. It would probably mean the world to Jeanne if you were to come take her."

"As in become her legal guardian?"

"Yes…" Bruce replied. "Of course you decide."

"Bruce…I'll meet you at the hospital tomorrow. Be there. I want to meet this girl."

Althea looked deadly, her dark eyes on Bruce. He wasn't intimidated, but hell Richard was! If a woman only about 5'4 could look threatening, than Althea was the poster woman. Kalika was smiling and said, "Why don't we spend some time together! Catch up with each other…I'd like to know more about your son Bruce. How old is he?"

"The same age as your niece, thirteen," Bruce replied.

Richard smiled and said, "I'd like to know, what was Ophelia like?"

"Ophelia was our triplet…" Kilika said. "Althea's the eldest by two minutes, than Ophelia, and then I came a minute after Ophelia. Me and Ophelia were always close. Ophelia was the sweetest girl ever. Ophie always took the time to listen to our problems, and she was very protective. If you wanted to hurt me or Althea, you'd have to get through her! When she got pregnant at such a young age we were all surprised—"

"I'm still convinced he raped her…"Althea hissed darkly.

Kilika glared at her sister and continued, "But we all got through it. I didn't like her husband though. Ophie had all these bruises and she looked sick. I never understood why Ophelia didn't talk to us….but…"

Kilika's eyes watered as she began to cry. Bruce took a sip of his coffee, and Dick laid a hand on top of Kilika's.

"I'm sorry…" he said simply. "But Jeanne needs you now. I know you're not sure about this, especially you Althea, but she needs her loving family."

Althea's eyes widened at the boy's directness. Definitely Bruce's son. There was something Bruce was most of the time and that was direct. It was one of the few reasons Althea loved Bruce. She would never say it to his face though. Althea looked at her watch and said, "It's almost nine o' clock. You should be getting that young man home. I'll see you tomorrow Bruce. No excuses."

She paid for the drinks, despite Bruce's protest and she got up. Kilika looked at the two of them and smirked at Dick.

"They're both so stubborn…" she giggled.

Dick smiled and decided that he really liked Kilika. She seemed like a nice lady, and she'd be the perfect aunt for Jeanne. A girl who's been shown bitterness and hate needed someone like Kilika. Kilika smiled and patted Dick on the back. She said good bye to Bruce. The two of them got into the car and drove away. Bruce put a hand on Dick's shoulder and the two got into the car.

…..

Jeanne was up and talking the next day.

"Judy?" she asked the nurse.

"Yes dear?" the nurse replied.

"What's gonna happen to me? My father's dead and….."

"I don't know dearie, but it'll be all right," the nurse reassured her.

A voice came from down the hall.

"Bruce…"

"Althea…"

"We close?"

"Yes for the last time Althea!"

The voices grew louder.

"In this room," a strangely familiar voice came.

The door opened to reveal Richard, his adopted father, and two ladies. The one with green eyes spotted Jeanne.

"Althea! She looks just like you!" Kilika gasped.

The one Jeanne deemed Althea looked at her. She walked over to the girl in the bed.

"You are Ophie's daughter…I can just tell," she whispered. "I'm your Aunt Althea. This is your Aunt Kilika."

Kilika waved at Jeanne. The girl smiled back at them and said, "Hi…I'm Jeanne."

The three girls smiled at once, Jeanne filling the blank spot Bruce had seen with the sisters. No one could replace Ophelia, but Jeanne could certainly fit in. Althea kissed Jeanne's forehead.

"We'll take you home Jeanne. You'll be safe with us, and you can still go to Gotham Academy," Althea said.

Kilika nodded with a grin. She looked at Dick and gave the boy a hug.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For finding our niece."

Dick smiled back at the older woman. He looked back at Bruce who had a relaxed look to him. Jeanne looked around at all the people who cared about her. She finally felt loved…she finally felt like she belonged.

…

Several Months Later:

"I'll race you!" a voice chirped.

"You're on!" another came.

Two kids could be seen chasing after one another. A girl was running away from a boy, both their black hair ruffled by the breeze. The boy tackled the girl and brought her to the ground. She giggled and a voice called out, "Gentle!"

Jeanne looked at Richard, both of them laughing and smiling. They turned to see Bruce, Kilika, and Althea staring at them. Kalika ran over to them and said, "Ready?"

Both kids smiled wickedly and Jeanne stood up.

"Oh Bruce!" she said looking at Richard.

"What dear Althea?" he replied looking at Jeanne.

"I've simply begun to realize what I can't deny, I love you and it's the truth!" Jeanne said. "I've wanted to tell you for so long…but you left us and went on to bigger and better things. I was insulted. I thought you cared nothing for me!"

"But alas! I thought it twas you who cared not for I!" Dick said in his best imitation of his mentor and father.

Althea's face grew bright red as she looked at Kilika.

"You….you…you—"

"Oh! Althea! I never thought I could feel this way towards someone. I've kept everyone at an arms-length because I fear I won't be able to protect them from the evils of the world!" Dick cried grasping Jeanne's hand.

Bruce shot Dick his lethal "bat glare". The boy smiled and continued, "I did notice you! How could I forget a woman like you! You're strong! You're independent! You've always seem to have the situation under control. You were one of the best female martial artists I've watched! Indeed I've seen others, but I've never paid anyone more attention than you!"

"Oh Bruce! I remember the good old days. You smiled at me when I told a rare joke. You always seemed to listen better than anyone else! I might even say you're as good as Ophelia!" Jeanne said.

"Althea….I love you."

"Bruce…I love you too."

The two kids smiled wickedly at each other. Althea looked like she was going to strangle Kalika. Bruce looked mad as hell.

"It's true!" Kalika shouted. "I've watched my sister from afar! I wished every day that she would just call him and admit it, but NO! Darn my stubborn sister!"

Bruce looked at Althea. Althea met his eyes and didn't look away. The two were quiet as they held each other's gaze. Kalika scurried over to Dick and Jeanne. They fist bumped each other and gave each other a look.

"C'mon kids," Kilika said. "Our work here…is done."

Jeanne and Richard followed Kilika. The two friends were close, Jea and Dick. Dick appreciated Jeanne's never wavering loyalty, and Jeanne appreciated Dick's tender understanding. The two continued in their crusade to persuade Bruce and Althea to go out….Kalika rooting them on in the peanut gallery.


End file.
